Canucks ground Jets in shootout, 3-2

ELLIOTT PAP, VANCOUVER SUN03.13.2014

Alex Burrows #14 of the Vancouver Canucks is congratulated on his goal in second-period action in an NHL game against the Winnipeg Jets at the MTS Centre on March 12, 2014 in Winnipeg.Marianne Helm
/ Getty Images

Vancouver Canucks goaltender Eddie Lack (31) watches as the shot from Winnipeg Jets’ Andrew Ladd (16) deflects off the leg of Shawn Matthias (27) during the closing minutes of the third period.JOHN WOODS
/ THE CANADIAN PRESS

Henrik Sedin #33 of the Vancouver Canucks skates down the ice in first period action in an NHL game against the Winnipeg Jets at the MTS Centre on March 12, 2014 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. It is Sedin’s 1000th career game.Marianne Helm
/ Getty Images

Devin Setoguchi #40 of the Winnipeg Jets gets tangled up with David Booth #7 of the Vancouver Canucks in third-period action.Marianne Helm
/ Getty Images

Alex Burrows #14 of the Vancouver Canucks congratulates Chris Higgins #20 on his game-winning goal in shootout action in an NHL game against the Winnipeg Jets at the MTS Centre on March 12, 2014 in Winnipeg.Marianne Helm
/ Getty Images

Vancouver Canucks’ Chris Higgins (20) scores on Winnipeg Jets goaltender Ondrej Pavelec (31) during the shoot out in NHL action in Winnipeg on Wednesday, March 12, 2014. The Canucks defeated the Jets 3-2.JOHN WOODS
/ THE CANADIAN PRESS

WINNIPEG — With a death watch on coach John Tortorella’s tenure behind the Vancouver Canucks’ bench, and the buzzards circling, every game down the stretch will be a referendum of sorts on Torts.

Did the Canucks compete? Did they look a team with a plan? Did they look like a team that cared? And, oh, did they win?

Let’s get to the last part first. They won, beating the Winnipeg Jets 3-2 in a shootout here Wednesday on a slick Chris Higgins’ forehand deke. They had to twice battle from behind and the result moved them one point clear of the Jets in the Western Conference standings and to within four of the Dallas Stars, who hold down the eighth and final coveted playoff spot.

The Canucks still sit 10th and everybody in the hunt holds games in hand on them. They have just 14 left so, really, that’s not terribly promising.

It also appears they will have to soldier on without the services of thoroughbred centre Ryan Kesler, who is being sent back to Vancouver for an MRI after taking a knee-on-knee hit from the Jets’ Jim Slater late in the second period.

The Canucks did compete, however, and avoided another third-period meltdown despite giving up 16 shots. Eddie Lack had a solid rebound game between the pipes and Alex Burrows — yes, Alex Burrows! — scored twice, his first and second of the season. He had gone a mind-boggling 35 games without a goal.

“It was one of those nights where the puck was finding me around the net,” said a relieved Burrows. “I had a lot of chances. Honestly, I think I could have had four. The reaction from the guys after the first one was funny. I know they’ve been pulling for me for a long time and they want the best for me and it was nice to see them react that way.

“It’s always tough when you don’t score, especially for that long. I never experienced something like that. It’s tough to put into words. You feel like you’re letting the guys down and letting the team down. I need to step up my game to help them out. We know these points are important for us.”

Burrows disputed the notion the players have given up, are mailing it in and just want this miserable season to end. Wednesday’s victory was only their third in the last 15 games.

“Not a lot of people believe in us but we do in here in this locker-room,” Burrows said. “We needed to win tonight and we found a way.”

If the Canucks have found Burrows again, it might help mitigate the loss of Kesler. The latter limped off favouring his right knee after the collision with Slater, who received only a two-minute tripping penalty. Shawn Matthias stepped into Kesler’s spot between Higgins and Jannik Hansen.

“We lose Kess before the third and we get down, so yeah, I thought we played hard and that’s two out of the last three games we played well in the third period,” said Tortorella. “So good for them. They hung in there. After losing a big guy like Kess, I thought they stuck together as a group and it was really nice to see.”

It was also nice, the coach added, to see Burrows finally find the back of the net, instead of the side, or the post, or missing it all together.

“He’s played hard right on through this,” said Torts. “He’s so well respected in the room and the guys feel for him because he’s trying. And he almost got a third, too. So it was good for him. He also did some great things killing penalties. He’s done all the little things except score.

“So Henrik scores the other night, Burr scores a couple tonight, maybe that’s a good sign for us as we continue to try and grind away and climb the hill.”

Lack, the rookie netminder, climbed his own personal hill against the Jets following his gigantic pratfall in Monday’s 7-4 debacle against the New York Islanders. He was beaten by Andrew Ladd in the second period and Michael Frolik in the third but shut the door for the final 17:42 of regulation and the five-minute overtime. He then stopped Devin Setoguchi, Ladd and Olli Jokinen in the shootout.

Lack, who played one season in Winnipeg for the Manitoba Moose, was taunted throughout the night by Jets’ fans but they weren’t able to throw him off his game.

“In my mind, they were cheering for me,” quipped Lack. “It was a really important game for me, for sure. I just needed a big bounce-back game and I’m sure happy that we got the win. After they scored to make it 2-1 in the third, I had to come up with a couple of good saves and I did. So obviously it was a really big relief for myself.”

ICE CHIPS: The road victory was the Canucks’ first after seven straight regulation losses away from Rogers Arena. They’ll try to make it two in a row Friday in Washington against Alex Ovechkin and his Capitals.

Canuck right-winger Zack Kassian has completed his three-game suspension and is eligible to return against the Caps.

GAME ESSENTIALS

THE SKINNY

The Canucks had the better of the territorial play in the scoreless first period, outshooting the Jets 14-9, but their power play came up empty on three opportunities. Jets captain Andrew Ladd and Alex Burrows exchanged second-period goals, and then Michael Frolic and Burrows exchanged another pair in the third before Chris Higgins won it for the Canucks in the shootout. Eddie Lack stopped 32 shots in regulation and overtime and all three he faced in the shootout.

BY THE NUMBERS

The victory was just the second on the road for Vancouver since the calendar turned to January (2-11-1). The other win was in Edmonton... The Jets, at one point 11-3-1 after changing coaches from Claude Noel to Paul Maurice, have lost five straight, although three have been beyond regulation... The Canucks won the faceoff battles 39-36 with Henrik Sedin leading the way at 14-for-22. Jordan Schroeder was 7-for-11, one of his offensive zone wins leading to Alex Burrows's first goal... Vancouver improved to 4-7 in shootouts.

HENRIK'S 1,000TH

Ever the diplomat, Henrik Sedin said he's enjoyed “every game” he's played in the league but, when pressed, he admit there was one that stood out among the 1,000. He hit the milestone Wednesday. “I mean, the last game against Calgary the year I won the scoring race (2009-10) was pretty special,” he said. Henrik collected four assists that night, a 7-3 Canuck win, to finish with 112 points. Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin were co-runners-up at 109 points each.

MORE HENRIK

Henrik will be honoured for his 1,000th game on March 23, a Sunday. The Buffalo Sabres will be the visitors that night. More from him on his milestone: “I love coming to the rink every day to play games. The hardest part was being injured this year and you're not part of it. It's been a long run and I've been through some ups and downs.” Henrik missed eight games with a rib injury and saw his ironman streak end at 679.

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Canucks ground Jets in shootout, 3-2

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